The Bill

The Bill
Title 1998–2010
Genre	Crime drama Police procedural Soap opera
Created by	Geoff McQueen
Starring	Main cast
Theme music composer	"Overkill" by Andy Pask and Charlie Morgan
Composer	Simba Studios
Country of origin	United Kingdom
Original language	English
No. of series	26
No. of episodes	2,425[1] (list of episodes)
Production
Executive producers	Lloyd Shirley (1984–1987) Peter Cregeen (1987–1989) Michael Chapman (1989–1998) Richard Handford (1998–2002) Chris Parr (2002) Paul Marquess (2002–2005) Johnathan Young (2005–2010)
Production locations	South London (Colliers Wood/Mitcham), England
Running time	22–46 minutes
Production companies	Thames Television (1983–2006) Talkback Thames (2006–2010)
Original release
Network	ITV
Release	16 August 1983 (1983-08-16) – 31 August 2010 (2010-08-31)
Related
Bureau Kruislaan Die Wache Burnside MIT: Murder Investigation Team Leipzig Homicide
Infobox instructions (only shown in preview)

The Bill is a British police procedural television series, first broadcast on ITV from 16 October 1984 until 31 August 2010. The programme originated from a one-off drama, Woodentop, broadcast on 16 August 1983.

The programme focused on the lives and work of one shift of police officers of all ranks, and the storylines dealt with situations faced by uniformed officers working on the beat, as well as plainclothes detectives. The Bill was the longest-running police procedural television series in the United Kingdom, and among the longest running of any British television series at the time of its cancellation. The title originates from "Old Bill", a slang term for the police. Throughout its 26-year run, the programme was always broadcast on the main ITV network. In later years, episodes of the show were repeated on ITV3 on their week of broadcast. The series has also been repeated on other digital stations, including Gold, Alibi, W, Dave, and Drama.

The series attracted controversy on several occasions. An episode broadcast in 2008 was criticised for featuring fictional treatment for multiple sclerosis. The series has also faced more general criticism concerning its levels of violence, particularly prior to 2009, when it occupied a pre-watershed slot. The Bill won several awards, including BAFTAs, a Writers' Guild of Great Britain award, and Best Drama at the Inside Soap Awards in four consecutive years (2006–09).

In March 2010, following a spell of declining audiences and negative public and media reception, executives at ITV announced that the network did not intend to recommission The Bill and that filming would cease on 14 June 2010. The final episode aired on 31 August 2010.